Leader of the House of Lords

House of Lords: Parliamentary Procedure

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask the Leader of the House whether she will initiate discussions with the usual channels as to the desirability of establishing a general principle whereby items of business with a speakers list of more than 35 members should be tabled over two days, and not on one.

Baroness Stowell of Beeston: Where the Speakers List for a debate is exceptionally long, it is open to the Usual Channels to consider special arrangements - including an early sitting of the House (as was arranged for the Second Reading of the European Union Referendum Bill) or adjourning the debate and resuming it on a subsequent day. However, in considering whether to make such arrangements, account must also be taken of members wishing to speak who may not be able to be present on a subsequent day, or for an earlier sitting, and would consequently not be able to participate if such an arrangement were made at short notice. For this reason, case-by-case consideration of the best way forward may serve the House better than a general principle, and so I do not propose to initiate discussions along the lines suggested at this time.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Public Sector: Trade Unions

Lord Mendelsohn: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultation they carried out about prohibiting public sector employers from providing a check-off service.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We have not undertaken a formal consultation. This clause will receive full Parliamentary scrutiny during the Bill's passage through Parliament.

Manufacturing Industries: Foreign Companies

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many manufacturing companies in the UK employing more than 500 people are foreign-owned; and what is their assessment of the implications of such ownership for the development of indigenous management.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Draft AnswerThere are 320 manufacturing enterprises in the UK with more than 500 employees that are foreign owned (i.e. have over 50% foreign control). This is 61% of manufacturing companies with over 500 employees. The UK welcomes foreign direct investment and enjoys the benefits of jobs and skills that it brings and UK manufacturing continues to be globally attractive and competitive. However, the Government is not aware of any evidence which indicates that foreign-owned companies treat UK management any differently to British-owned companies.We are taking a number of steps to increase indigenous management skills and capability. Apprenticeships standards are now available or being developed in senior level and management occupations. These include degree level qualifications and cover such areas as Manufacturing Engineer, Chartered Manager and Project Manager.The apprenticeships levy will come into effect from April 2017. It will apply to all UK employers with a pay bill in excess of £3 million and incentivise them to train their apprentices in the technical and professional skills their businesses need, including quality management and leadership.The Government is also supporting work being undertaken by senior industry leaders to examine ways to increase manufacturing productivity in the UK, which is part of the business-led action referenced in the Government’s Productivity Plan published in July 2015. This work will look at how indigenous performance could be improved in areas such as leadership, management and employee engagement, and will also consider what steps could be taken to develop a stronger culture that embraces innovation and new technologies such as digitisation. We will consider the findings when they are produced by industry later in 2016.

Universities: CAGE

Lord Balfe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to take steps to ensure that the organisation CAGE is prevented from speaking at British universities.

Baroness Evans of Bowes Park: The Government introduced a duty on universities in September to ensure that they have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. The statutory guidance which accompanies the duty makes clear that universities must ensure that they assess the risks associated with organisations and speakers at events on campus, putting mitigations in place where necessary or cancelling events where the risk cannot be mitigated.The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has been appointed as the body to monitor compliance at English universities, including where potential breaches of the duty are reported. Appropriate arrangements will apply in Wales and Scotland.

Universities: Radicalism

Lord Balfe: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to take steps to prevent the Egyptian cleric Fadel Soliman from speaking at British universities.

Baroness Evans of Bowes Park: The Government introduced a duty on universities in September 2015 to ensure that they have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. The statutory guidance which accompanies the duty makes clear that universities must ensure that they assess the risks associated with organisations and speakers at events on campus, putting mitigations in place where necessary or cancelling events where the risk cannot be mitigated.The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has been appointed as the body to monitor compliance at English universities, including where potential breaches of the duty are reported. Appropriate arrangements will apply in Wales and Scotland.

Department for International Development

Burundi: Bilateral Aid

Lord Bruce of Bennachie: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider re-opening a bilateral development programme in Burundi, in the light of recent violence in that country.

Baroness Verma: The UK Government is extremely concerned by the ongoing political unrest in Burundi, and its humanitarian consequences, including the flow of Burundian refugees to neighbouring countries.DFID offices across the region, including in Tanzania, DRC, Rwanda and Uganda, are working closely to monitor the situation, review preparedness activities and provide humanitarian support. £18.15 million has been committed by DFID for refugee response in the region through UN agencies, such as UNHCR, UNICEF and WFP, and international NGOs. This funding includes £14.25 million to support refugees in Tanzania, and £3.9 million to support refugees in Rwanda. We are staying in close contact with the UN system about future funding needs. Additionally, DFID is working closely with the FCO to coordinate HMG’s response, and international partners such as the EU on Article 96 discussions, to ensure that humanitarian assistance continues to reach those in need.DFID is monitoring the situation closely and may consider additional funding. DFID has deployed a Humanitarian Advisor to the region in support of the response and to monitor funding provided so far.DFID is currently undertaking a Bilateral Aid Review, but there are no plans to reopen the DFID office in Burundi.

Ministry of Justice

Forensic Science: Languages

Lord Quirk: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 21 December 2015 (HL4282), how they reconcile that answer with the statement by the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology in Postnote on forensic linguistics of September 2015 that even recordings of an offender's voice, verified to the satisfaction of police experts, are "not admissible as evidence" in the criminal justice system.

Lord Faulks: The research briefing to which the noble Lord refers distinguishes between speaker profiling, which courts have yet to find to be sufficiently reliable a technique to constitute admissible evidence in a criminal case, and speaker comparison, evidence of which may be admissible.Expert evidence is admissible in criminal proceedings at common law. In summary, the evidence must be relevant to what is in issue; it must be capable of helping the court to assess the significance of matters beyond everyday experience (for example, the results of scientific tests); and it must be given by someone who is competent to do so. The Criminal Procedure Rules and the associated Criminal Practice Directions set out the procedure for introducing expert evidence, and list the factors to which the court will have regard in determining the reliability of expert opinion.

The Lord Chairman of Committees

Peers: Oaths and Affirmations

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock: To ask the Chairman of Committees how many Peers have taken the Oath of Allegiance in the current Session.

Lord Laming: 826 Members have taken the oath of allegiance or made the solemn affirmation in the current session. This includes 799 Peers and 27 Lords Spiritual. The figure includes Members who have subsequently died, taken leave of absence or retired during the session.

Ministry of Defence

Royal Military Academy

Baroness Jolly: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many foreign nationals received training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in each year between 2005 and 2016.

Baroness Jolly: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many nationals of (1) Bahrain, (2) Kuwait, (3) Oman, (4) Qatar, (5) Saudi Arabia, and (6) the United Arab Emirates, received training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in each year between 2005 and 2016.

Baroness Jolly: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what financial remuneration the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst has received from the training of foreign nationals in each year between 2005 and 2016.

Baroness Jolly: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what financial remuneration the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst has received from the training of nationals of (1) Bahrain, (2) Kuwait, (3) Oman, (4) Qatar, (5) Saudi Arabia, and (6) the United Arab Emirates, in each year between 2005 and 2016.

Earl Howe: Defence has a long and proud tradition of training overseas military and civilian personnel at its training establishments throughout the UK and this is an essential ingredient of Defence Engagement. Training establishments such as Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS) offer international students prestigious courses which remain highly prized. Courses currently undertaken by foreign nationals are the Commissioning Course, the Army Reserve Commissioning Course, the Professionally Qualified Officer Course and the International Trainer Development Course.These courses expose international partners to UK policy, and promote concepts of accountability, human rights and transparency. They are important in building skills which enable other countries to deal appropriately with their own internal problems, thereby contributing to regional security. The courses are paid for by a combination of self and UK funding. Information on the number of foreign nations in receipt of training at RMAS is provided in the attached table.



HL4953-Foreign Nations trained at RMA Sandhurst
(Word Document, 29.56 KB)

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Brunei Gallery

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they provided financial support to the exhibition Sand in My Eyes: Sudanese Moments at the Brunei Gallery, and what assessment they have made of whether that exhibition received funding from the government of Sudan or the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: We did not provide financial support to the exhibition Sand in My Eyes: Sudanese Moments at the Brunei Gallery, which is co-presented by the Brunei Gallery, SOAS and the Embassy of the Republic of Sudan.We are aware that the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs are supporting the exhibition, however no formal assessment has been made whether the exhibition has received funding from the Government of Sudan or the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services.The human rights situation in Sudan remains of serious concern; HMG consistently raise our concerns with the Government of Sudan and armed opposition groups and, where relevant, in the UN.

Home Office

Vetting

Lord Vinson: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Henley on 21 March 2012 (HL Deb, cols 914–6), and in the light of the fact that the number of Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in 2014–15 was the highest since 2010–11, what plans they have to reduce the number of DBS checks, and in particular to limit the DBS checking of groups such as parent volunteers.

Lord Bates: The Government has introduced an Update Service to enable existing criminal record certificates to be kept up to date whilst reducing the need for repeat checks with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The DBS is driving greater uptake of the Update Service which will continue to reduce the need for repeat checks.The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 reduced the scope of “regulated activity” from which unsuitable people can be barred. It is for schools to decide whether or not to carry out disclosure checks on parent volunteers who work under supervision.

Police: Biometrics

Lord Scriven: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 12 November 2015 (HL3286), whether the review of the retention of custody images by police forces has now been completed and reported; if so, what are the recommendations of that review and how they will be taken forward; and if not, why not.

Lord Bates: The Review of the use and Retention of Custody Images has now concluded. The report has been submitted to Ministers and they will consider the recommendations. The outcome of this will be made public in due course.

Road Traffic Offences

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 16 December 2015 (HL4139), what assessment they have made of whether the police have sufficient officers to undertake enforcement action to deal with moving traffic offences outside London.

Lord Bates: The Government has not made any assessment of this nature. It is a matter for chief officers, working with their Police and Crime Commissioners to decide the size and makeup of their workforce, taking into account local priorities.

Police

Lord Birt: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 30 November 2015 (HL3832), what assessment they have made of Eurostat's figures for comparative police numbers in EU countries; whether they accept that police numbers in England and Wales per head of population are at 64 percent of the average of France, Germany, Italy, and Spain; and whether they consider police numbers in England and Wales to be at an appropriate level.

Lord Bates: Comparisons of police numbers between different EU countries should be made with extreme caution. This is because different countries have different legal systems, police responsibilities vary considerably, and there are differences in definitions used.Decisions on the size and composition of the police workforce are operational matters for Chief Officers working with their Police and Crime Commissioners and taking into account local priorities. What matters is how officers are deployed, not how many of them there are. All forces need to look at the way frontline services are delivered to ensure that the quality of service provided is maintained or improved.

Rights of Accused

Lord Morris of Aberavon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 30 November 2015 (HL3712), whether, in the interests of transparency, they will arrange for police forces to collate and publicise the occasions on which persons arrested but not charged have had their names disclosed.

Lord Bates: The Home Office currently has no plans to arrange for police forces to collate and publish data in relation to the occasions on which persons arrested but not charged have had their names disclosed.Police are guided in making such decisions by the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice (APP) Guidance on ‘Relationships with the media’.There are clearly great risks in naming suspects and the College of Policing guidance makes clear that decisions should only be made on a case-by-case basis, and that the police should not release the names of those who are arrested or suspected of a crime unless they have clearly identified circumstances to justify disclosure.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

International Climate Fund

Lord Donoughue: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of any intermittency issues concerning renewable generating capacity installed using finance from the UK International Climate Fund.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: Through the International Climate Fund (ICF) we support a number of renewable energy projects in developing countries, with the aim to increase the availability of affordable, reliable and sustainable energy. On the grid, we support a diverse portfolio of renewable energies which are planned to contribute to generation diversity and system stability; we also support off-grid renewable energy systems, which are integrated with storage technologies. ICF support not only keeps the lights on, but also improves health and education, spurs economic growth and creates jobs. Our work is aligned with the new Global Goals, particularly Goal 7, to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all by 2030.

Fossil Fuels

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they respond to the chief executive of Shell, who claims that oil and gas companies would be negatively affected in the event that the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of our EU membership that cause so much frustration in the United Kingdom - so we can get a better deal for our country and secure our future.

Department of Health

Pharmacy: Training

Baroness Masham of Ilton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans for pharmacists who support general practitioners and Accident and Emergency departments to be trained as healthcare professionals, rather than solely as scientists.

Lord Prior of Brampton: It is the responsibility of the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC) to set the standards and outcomes for the education and training of pharmacists and to approve training curricula to ensure newly qualified pharmacists are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality care.New roles for pharmacists are being pursued as part of the NHS Five Year Forward View, most notably the employment of clinical pharmacists in general practitioner practices.In partnership with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, NHS England has launched a pilot programme to support general practices to recruit and employ clinical pharmacists. This is supported by Health Education England (HEE) through the delivery of a comprehensive education and training programme. This is a new role unlike acute hospital pharmacists or community pharmacists. They will consult with patients, be able to prescribe, where necessary, in particular for those with long term conditions and multiple medication, developing individual pharmaceutical care plans.HEEare considering the potential development of an enhanced programme of clinical training for pharmacists in accident and emergency following research undertaken in 2015 in partnership with the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, GPC and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society.While there are a range of (often) locally-isolated examples of good practice in the Emergency Department (ED) workforce, there exists little published evidence to support the role of pharmacists in the ED or, specifically, to support pharmacists in undertaking “hands-on” clinical work in the ED. As a result, HEE commenced nation leading project development and research, in partnership with the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, GPC and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, with the following aims:- To test and justify development of clinical pharmacist roles within the ED; and- To provide an evidence base for further project work and national scaling.